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There But for the Grace of Grace
There But for the Grace of Grace is the 21st episode of the second season and 43rd overall. Will and Grace visit a retired professor who inspired them during college. Jack competes with Will's boss Ben in teaching Karen how to cook, among other things. Synopsis Tuesdays with Morrie Will finds out from the alumni newsletter that Joseph Dudley, a professor of his and Grace's from college, has retired. After reminiscing and remembering the positive impact he has made on their lives, Will and Grace decide to visit him in his home. However, instead of the optimistic and happy person they knew, an old and bitter Professor Dudley greets them. Will and Grace also meet the professor's best friend Sharon, with whom he has an openly resentful relationship. Sharon recalls that the strain in their friendship started years prior when he made fun of her in front of colleagues and never apologized. Will and Grace immediately notice the similarities between their friendships and become terrified that they would also end up bitter and full of resentment. On the ride home, Will, who refuse to own up for his nasty behavior finally apologizes to Grace for making fun of her earlier. Ben vs. Jack Jack is using Will and Grace's apartment to teach Karen how to cook for her husband's birthday. Will's boss Ben Doucette drops by and mentions that he was an actual chef prior to becoming a lawyer. After negotiating with Karen that he should get paid, Ben starts cooking as Jack is set aside. Feeling inadequate compared to the talented Ben (who also beat him in racquetball), Jack challenges him in different fields including tap dancing. Though Jack is clearly a bad tap dancer, Ben spares his feelings and surrenders and compliments his dancing. However, as soon as Jack leaves the room, Ben shows Karen that he is actually an extremely good tap dancer. Cast Main * Eric McCormack (Will Truman) * Debra Messing (Grace Adler) * Sean Hayes (Jack McFarland) * Megan Mullally (Karen Walker) Guest * Gregory Hines (Ben Doucette) * Orson Bean (Joseph Dudley) * Piper Laurie (Sharon Timmers) * Gary Beach (Phil) (scenes deleted) Notes * Title is a reference to the expression "there but for the grace of God (go I)", said when something bad that has happened to someone else could have happened to you. * Gregory Hines is a professional tap dancer and we get to see him in action in this episode. * A scene was taped with a character that represented Joseph and Sharon's "Jack" named Phil, originally played by Tony Award winner Gary Beach. When Beach lost interest, the character was recast multiple times but the scene was eventually cut. * Michelle Bochner Spitz's only writing credit for the show. Cultural references * The episode makes several references to Mitch Albom's 1997 memoir Tuesdays with Morrie, which narrates his visits to a professor from college, much like Professor Dudley to Will and Grace. ** In this context, Jack suggests that Will and Grace "visit Jack Lemmon", who played Morrie in the 1999 film adaptation. * Will refers to Jack as "Chrissy", after the dimwitted character Chrissy Snow from Three's Company. Media Gettyimages-138392664-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392660-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389800-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389802-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389803-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138387780-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392711-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392715-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138387777-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138387778-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138387779-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138387781-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389798-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389799-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138389801-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392374-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392658-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392659-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392661-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392662-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392663-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392665-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392666-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392667-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392668-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392669-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392670-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392712-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392713-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392714-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392716-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392717-612x612.jpg Gettyimages-138392718-612x612.jpg Quotes Category:Episodes Category:Season 2